Are You Alice?
by solitaryloner
Summary: Alice is a fundamental character in Wonderland...a Wonderland without an Alice is useless, like pieces of scrap paper fluttering to the ground. In order to become Alice, one will have to play a childish little game, a simple sounding game which is, in reality, anything but simple. Are you Alice? Do you think you can lead us all out of this cursed Wonderland? LenXMikuXRei. Redone.
1. Are You Alice?

_**Solitaryloner: **For all the people who have been reading this from the very start (not that many people read this story), I'm sorry. I had to redo the whole thing, because the plot refuses to work with me here. I wanted this to be more...original, not based off anything. But it'll still be a little like Alice of Human Sacrifice._

_Please reread this from the start, if you could be so kind. It will be rather different from my original 'Are You Alice?' in several ways - there will be more focus on Len as a main character, for one. And...well, many things in the new 'Are You Alice?' will be unlike the old one._

_In the new 'Are You Alice?', I'm going to try and give the story a more twisted, grotesque and dreamlike feeling than it had previously. If you aren't too busy, then please review and tell me if I have managed to achieve this effect._

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It had all started with a dream. Everything had been set in motion by a mere dream.

It was a tiny dream, one so small that people might wonder where it had come from. It was such a small, unimportant dream that no one knew who had dreamt up of it. That in itself was strange enough, for one didn't see too many dreams wandering around without its dreamer. But what was rather odd here, was that this dream had a mind of its own.

Now, dreams were not supposed to have a mind. After all, as one might argue, dreams were nothing but dreams - _dreams cannot think for themselves, _you might try to say. However, a dream is something, is it not? And something will always have an...essence of sorts. A want, a wish, a desire to make itself known to the whole world. That is a dream.

So this dream...it had a dream as well, despite itself being a dream. And its wish was, _I don't want to fade away. I don't wish to disappear into nothing, as though I've never existed. _So the dream sat and thought for a very, very long time. It wondered which way it could use to best continue existing. So that it wouldn't leave and fade away, being forgotten by everyone.

After much thinking, it finally stumbled across a solution. A solution that would help it to achieve what it wished - to remain in the world, and be remembered by humans, that was. It was a dream, was it not? And dreams were worlds of _make-believe, _where anything might happen. So why didn't it open itself up to others and allow them to stumble inside, so that they would all remain in its dream world for evermore?

Humans were greedy creatures, the little dream knew that. They hungered after things they could not have, and they were all much too curious for their own good. Tricking people to remain in its world for all of eternity...wouldn't be too difficult a task to carry out. After all, if the dream offered humans a world where they could do anything they wanted...then of course, they wouldn't want to leave. Would they?

The dream fretted about that for a moment - for what if they chose to _wake up? _But then, quickly, the dream thought of another solution. This dream was a tiny one, barely noticeable, but it was a clever dream, and it knew that in order to force people to stay...it would have to think of a way for them to never wake up. And that was easy. A game, the dream decided - an unsolvable riddle that would trap them all.

The humans who fell into the world of the dream would never be able to make their way out, not without first playing the dream's game - and the dream would not allow anyone to win, naturally. However, this dream was a rather sporting dream. It was willing to offer its participants a fighting chance, to try and make their way out of its twisted world, if they really so desired for that. But it wouldn't play fair.

The dream would cheat, so that the players could never win. Ah, so perhaps cheating was greatly frowned upon by the humans. But a dream wasn't a human now, was it? And dreams didn't play by the rules. This dream was a dream that wanted to survive, and in a battle to live, few things would care about the rules. This dream was determined to make people remember it, so it would do such a thing.

Once people started falling into the dark embrace of the twisted world the dream had conjured up, then things would change. People wouldn't be able to run away. And the dream would be able to survive, as people would recall it. They would remember it, these people who were trapped within it, and they would all remember the dream well. That satisfied the dream greatly, naturally. One by one...

People fell into the dream, tempted by the idea of a world with no rules. A world where they were free to be whatever they wished to be. That sounded good on the outside, of course - but then, things were very different, in reality. In reality, once they went it, they couldn't go out - and one by one, their darkest fears, their deepest desires, all manifested themselves to haunt these unfortunate souls for evermore.

For ever. And ever. For all of eternity. _For that is the price humans must pay for their greed._

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_Are you Alice? Alice of the twisted Wonderland, the one who's supposed to lead us all out of here...are you Alice? _Len Kagamine shook his head, gritting his teeth. He had been wandering around this land for...he lost track. He couldn't recall anything other than falling...how far had he fallen? He couldn't be sure. He had fallen down a hole, and now he was here. Nowhere.

He had no idea where he was. He had woken up after the fall - after all, the fall had been a rather long one, and he didn't know how long he had been hurtling downwards for. A second, maybe. An hour. Perhaps for a year. He couldn't be sure, for no matter where he looked, time refused to continue ticking. The sun, a strange shade of burnt out orange, hung low in the sky, refusing to either rise or set. It was strange.

Len couldn't actually remember much, and that worried him. He was lost, in a land he didn't recognise - how had he even gotten here, he could not recall. He had...fallen asleep...and in a dream, he had stumbled down a hole, losing his footing on the ground. Before he knew it, he was falling, falling, falling...all manner of strange things had happened to him while he had fallen, but he recalled none of them.

Some time must have lapsed between the fall and this, though. For there was nothing but blankness in his mind, as he tried to bring back his more recent memories. Nothing. In fact, the only thing he could recall was falling asleep...and falling. When he next opened his eyes, he was here. But surely something must have happened, after the fall? He certainly had not fallen into a forest, he was sure of that.

He held out his hands before his face, studying them. His fingers curled loosely into fists, the pale skin standing out in the gloomy darkness of the dense forest. Yes, he was in a forest now, that he could be certain of. He remembered enough to know that such a thick patch of trees would be considered a forest. But then, where was he supposed to go? Was he supposed to go straight, into that never-ending darkness?

A flicker of white caught his eye, and Len whipped around. There was nothing there. Irritated, Len ran his fingers through his blond hair, looking down at the dirt ground. It was dark brown, and for some reason, that rather surprised him. This was a dream, was it not? He had expected the ground to be some kind of outlandish colour, not this mundane...brown. To tell the truth, that rather disappointed him.

_Where am I, and what am I supposed to be doing? _He took an uncertain step forward, deeper into the heart of the forest. He had no idea where he was trying to go, but anything had to be better than just remaining here and...well, not moving. Moving forward surely had to be much better than just standing still, here. But then, he found he was rather reluctant to leave the relative safety of this little spot.

_Come now, Alice, _came that unfamiliar voice again. The voice he didn't recognise. Len froze in his tracks, suddenly unable to keep on moving forward - uncertainty shot through him, making him nervous. _Be brave. You know you're destined for great things...wouldn't you like to be Alice? Alice of Wonderland, whose only destiny is to be happy. Don't you want to be happy in this land, Alice of Wonderland?_

''My name is not Alice,'' Len said sharply, his voice ringing out in the gloom. The thickness of the forest absorbed his voice though, and the sound was quickly swallowed up by the trees. ''Stop calling me that. My name is Len.'' Len listened closely for some kind of reply, but there was none at all. Nothing but him and the sound of his own shallow breathing. _The first sign of madness, talking to your own head._

He had to wonder whether that was his own thought, or whether it belonged to that other voice. The voice that he had been hearing, ever since he had first opened his eyes and found himself here. It was rather strange, hearing a voice coming from nowhere - perhaps it was the voice of this dream, speaking to him. This voice seemed to issue from everywhere, yet at the same time, it came from nowhere.

Or perhaps it was because he was slowly going insane. Len worried for a while, but then he put the thought aside, locking it behind a large door. Putting the thought out of sight, and out of mind. _A thought that has been discarded...we all must discard things from our pasts, so that we can continue moving forward. Must we not? _Len sighed softly, taking another step forward. He felt someone watching him.

Maybe it was simply his paranoia, but he thought he could sense eyes piercing him, studying his every move. And in a place that was unknown, in a land he found completely unfamiliar, that sense of being..._watched, _set him on edge. It made his hackles rise, an unfamiliar wariness filling him - he was unused to this sense of danger, as he was usually sure of his safety. Suddenly, Len felt rather...small.

_Where am I? _''In Wonderland, that's where,'' a clear, quiet voice rang out from behind him. Len twisted around, his eyes widening - there was someone other than himself in here, and he found that fact rather startling. ''Welcome to Wonderland, 'Alice','' the voice came from a boy, likely no older than Len himself was. He looked to be about eighteen, just like he was, but that was where all similarities to Len ended.

He had silvery white hair, and dual coloured eyes - his left eye was a vivid green, the green of a polished emerald. His right eye was a rather different cerulean blue, several shades lighter than Len's own navy blue. The boy's hair was chin length and untied, but it was neat. Now that Len was paying attention, he noticed that there was a thin sword hanging at the boy's hip, glinting dangerously. Seductively.

People did say that danger was seductive. Len's eyes were drawn to the sword, and how it seemed to beckon to him, willing him to come closer...so that it could swipe itself across his neck, luxuriating in the feeling of bright red blood splattering across gleaming silver metal. Len shook his head, breaking the hypnotising trance that the sword had held over him. This world was getting stranger by the minute.

The boy was dressed in a white shirt and black knee-length trousers. He also happened to be barefooted. The boy stared impassively at Len, and self-consciously Len stared down at his own clothes. With a start, he realised he was dressed much like the boy was - in his case, Len wore a white shirt with light blue sleeves. His pants were pure white as well. He wasn't dressed like he usually was, that he knew.

He wondered why the other boy was barefooted - his clothes looked like they were of high quality, and it certainly seemed as though he was capable of affording shoes. Even Len was wearing a pair of black leather shoes. However, Len chose not to comment on the boy's state of dress. ''Who are you? Why am I here in this...'' Len hesitated for a brief moment. ''In this Wonderland?'' he finally finished lamely.

A small smile flickered across the boy's lips, and the smile made him look rather...dangerous, almost. As though he knew a great deal, and that great deal was fundamental to whether Len lived or died - and he supposed, in a way, that could be true. After all, this other boy probably knew a great deal more than Len himself did. Actually, anyone else would know far more than Len did, at this very moment.

''You're here for one of two reasons. Maybe you got sucked into this dream because you were greedy...greedy for what, it doesn't matter. No one need ever know. Or, perhaps you were too curious for your own good. This dream, known as Wonderland, it likes curious people, you know? They're so easy for the dream to lure in. Curious people always want to know of things that they shouldn't know about. How silly.''

This person was getting on Len's nerves already, and he had only been speaking for about ten seconds. Or less. ''Do you think I'm here out of greed, or out of curiosity?'' he challenged bluntly, ignoring the amused light that danced through the other boy's eyes. Len realised dimly that he still didn't know what he was named - and how had he managed to show up here, in the middle of seemingly nowhere?

''Well, I would hope for your sake that you're here because of greed. Because it's much harder if you're here due to curiosity. You're less willing to leave then, you see,'' the boy's voice turned pensive. ''Not that I would know. I'm not figuring out why you stumbled into this cursed place - I'm just here to notify you of the rules. Every place in the world has rules, but Wonderland's rules are different from most.''

''Where is Wonderland, first of all?'' Len demanded, feeling rather confused at this point in time. ''And who are you?'' At that question, the silver haired boy grinned, his dual coloured eyes narrowing in what seemed to be thought. His hand slowly drifted to the sword, strapped to his side, and Len resisted the urge to back away from him. There was no reason for him to fear this strange, mysterious boy. Was there?

''Me?'' the boy cocked his head. ''I'm the White Rabbit of Wonderland. You may call me Piko Utatane,'' he smiled, an arrogant smile. ''No need to introduce yourself. I know who you are...'' he sighed. ''Len Kagamine,'' he started. ''Aged eighteen. Blond haired, blue eyed - your typical Alice, I suppose,'' he muttered. ''You stumbled into this dream quite recently, and you've been wandering here ever since. Lost.''

Len blinked. ''How did you know -'' his voice hardened as he noticed the further widening of the White Rabbit's smirk. ''Never mind all that, then. But where is Wonderland?'' Len glanced around, processing what else this Piko had said. _Your typical Alice...Wonderland? Does he mean, Alice of Wonderland? But then, how could this possibly be Wonderland? This is nothing but a dream. And Wonderland is a fictional world._

''Wonderland is everywhere,'' came the cryptic reply. ''A place where lost people come to rest and rot, people who have given up their pasts and their memories...people driven by greed for a better life, or by an insatiable curiosity which drives them insane. Only the mad or the greedy would ever willingly step into Wonderland. It is a cursed world, where anything you wish for comes true. The same way nightmares do.''

Wonderland...''Alice of Wonderland?'' Len mused aloud. Piko, the boy who had called himself the White Rabbit, stiffened at that name. Len noticed the way the boy's dual coloured eyes slid over to him, studying him carefully. As though he expected something to happen. Maybe he thought that Len would do something entertaining, to prove that he was one of those insane people. Or perhaps he was not.

''Yes, Alice of Wonderland,'' Piko murmured. ''Only people who've given up their pasts can become the Alice of this twisted, alternate Wonderland. Which is why you can't remember anything but falling, isn't that so?'' Len stiffened. How had the boy known? ''Fret not,'' Piko continued. ''You see, I'm here to serve as a...guide. To help you learn the rules. You're the newest candidate for Alice, as you know.''

''No. I don't know anything,'' Len protested. ''And I'm not Alice. I can't be Alice. My name is Len Kagamine.'' _I can't remember anything about my past. I just remember closing my eyes, and falling asleep...falling down a long passageway. The only other thing I can recall about myself is my name. Len Kagamine. It's not something that I wish to lose. What are the memories of my past...that I can't seem to remember?_

''You are he no longer,'' Piko's voice was cool. ''You've forgotten everything - you've moved on. And, now that you're in Wonderland, you will have a new identity. You are the new Alice of Wonderland, a fundamental character in here - a person this twisted world lacks. And, as with all characters, Alice has a certain set of rules to play by. We all have to play a game with this dream to get out of here, did you know that?''

''What game?'' Even against his will, Len was becoming intrigued. A game? That sounded interesting. Besides, he recalled nothing about his past. For now. Playing a game, as Piko said, should help to pass the time...meanwhile, perhaps he could search this world for his lost memories, for the things that he was unable to remember. And when he found out his past, maybe he would be able to leave this place.

After all, hadn't the White Rabbit said that Wonderland was for people who had discarded things important to them, for people who had thrown away all their memories? A land for those who had lost their way. If he could regain his memories...surely he wouldn't be lost anymore. ''It's a simple game, really,'' Piko admitted. ''Simple, childish and terribly clear-cut. This is actually a rather...boring game.''

He was Len Kagamine. He had woken up in a dream, to find himself in a land he didn't recognise. The only person he had contact with, so far, was this boy standing before him. And Piko Utatane was not making a great deal of sense. Len wanted to get out of here - he had never desired to find this world. A place for greedy people, desperate for a better life...but why would they find that life in this world?

''You're the latest candidate for Alice. This dream we're in...once you get in, you can't get out,'' Piko explained. ''Only the true Alice of this twisted Wonderland can leave. You are a candidate for Alice, but you are not Alice yet. In order to obtain the name of 'Alice', it's truly rather simple...you just have to kill me,'' he smiled briefly. ''Simply kill the White Rabbit of Wonderland. Isn't it a childish game to win?''

''Kill you?'' Len's eyes widened. ''Why?'' he asked, not quite wanting to know the answer. _Kill? In cold blood? How is that a game? That's no game. That's murder. _''What kind of game is this? And that's a twisted rule,'' Len breathed. ''I'm not Alice...'' he glanced around, behind him. Nothing but stretches of forest, stretching out further than the eye could see...how far exactly had he walked, since he had first _woken up?_

''You are 'Alice', whether you choose to accept that or not,'' the White Rabbit shrugged casually. ''You don't have a choice in whether or not you can kill me. Once you stepped into Wonderland, _candidate of Alice..._this game has been set into motion. You do not believe me, do you?'' he asked slyly. ''Then I suggest that you see the Queen of Hearts. She is the ruler of Wonderland, and she will tell you what to do then.''

''I'm not Alice -'' but before Len could protest any further, the silver haired boy had disappeared from his sight. _Keep moving forward, discarding things which you find important to yourself...keep moving forward, and seek an audience with the Queen of Hearts. But you might want to be careful when you speak to her - for, if you offend her, it will be off with your head._

The voice was back. Len scowled, but chose to take its advice. For once. After all, it wasn't as though he had any other option open to him. Hesitantly, he took a step forward, further into the seemingly impenetrable gloom of the forest. An audience with the Queen of Hearts, whoever this person was? Then she would tell him what he ought to do? Was he really supposed to just...kill the White Rabbit?

But why was he supposed to kill the White Rabbit? What kind of twisted game was this? Other questions lingered in the back of his mind - questions he hadn't had a chance to ask Piko. How had the White Rabbit managed to appear out of nowhere, to stand before him? And why was he the candidate for Alice? Was it simply because he had woken up to find himself in this dream world? Who had dreamt this dream?

He wasn't Alice, was he? He was Len. Why would he want to be Alice, if he had a name of his own? But then, only the true Alice could get away from this dream, apparently. The dream, the twisted Wonderland that lured dreamers in and wouldn't let them out. Was he supposed to discard the one remaining memory he had, of his past and his life, and take on the name of Alice? Just so that he could get out of here?

He still had no idea why, or how, he had stumbled into Wonderland. All he knew was, he had woken up in a dream, to find himself in here. To find himself lost, wandering in a world where he couldn't find the way out. Perhaps this would be a way for him to escape, so that he could truly wake up from this dream, and return to his actual life? Return to a life where he could remember more than just his name?

Because that was what he wanted to know. Clearly, there was a reason why he could remember nothing - there had to be a reason why he had discarded his memories, and woken up within a dream to find himself in here. In a world for people who had thrown aside their memories...a world for people who had lost their way. A world for the greedy, and for the eternally curious. But he wanted to know why.

Why was it that he was here, in a place no one could get out of? And why was he 'Alice', when he hadn't even known of this twisted little game to begin with? For that wasn't fair, surely? After all, he had not requested to be a candidate for Alice. What was it about him that made him fitting for this role...the role to kill the White Rabbit? Being Alice would let him get out of Wonderland, apparently, but at what cost?

Len didn't want to be a murderer, even if it meant giving up his freedom. Even if it meant that he wouldn't be able to leave this place. Then again, this world didn't seem that bad...yet. Why would he wish to leave, at present, if he wanted to stay? Len shook his head, feeling rather confused. He just wanted to regain his memories, and frankly, he didn't mind whether he stayed in this dream or not. For now.

_The Queen of Hearts...I wonder who she is, and what kind of person is she? Hopefully, she'll be less infuriating and cryptic than the White Rabbit was. Maybe her explanations would make more sense. Would she think that I'm this...Alice, as Piko Utatane so claims? Or would she agree with me, and call me Len Kagamine? Anyway, I hope...I hope she's a nice person._

Despite all those thoughts, however, one thought lingered behind in his mind. _Anger the Queen of Hearts, and it's off with your head._


	2. Down The Rabbit Hole

_**Solitaryloner: **Okay, so I changed the identity of the Jack of Hearts, in case you've read this story before I deleted the previous version. It was getting hard to write with Akaito as Jack, so...I'm hoping it'll be easier for me, now._

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_The Queen of Hearts...the ruler of Wonderland. Disobey her, and it will be off with your head. She is well-known for her love of the colour red, and she detests the colour white._

_The card soldiers had mistakenly planted white roses instead of red ones. Frantically, they tried to paint all the roses red, hoping that the Queen wouldn't notice. They brushed and they brushed, and the drops of red which splattered to the ground looked almost like..._

The Queen was lounging in her throne, swinging her slender legs over the hard arm of the ornate seat. Standing behind her was a blond man, his face as expressionless as usual. He had blue grey eyes, and his blond hair was perfect, without a single lock out of place. Such immaculate perfection was only to be expected, from someone who served the Queen - she desired nothing but the very best of the best.

The Queen surrounded herself in only the best - which was natural, since she was, after all, the Queen. Her servants were all the most beautiful people who could be found in this cursed place, and her personal servant, the man who now stood behind her throne, was the most perfect of them all. The Queen glanced up, beckoning him closer. ''Come here,'' she commanded, flicking her fingers impatiently at him.

Without a word, he approached her, his face not betraying any single hint of emotion. The Queen arched up, cupping his flawless face in her small hands, and she noticed something almost like...desire, flickering through his normally impassive gaze. Secretly, she smiled - she knew that he adored her, that he wanted her to be his...but then, she was the Queen. And the Queen didn't love anyone other than herself.

Her lips met his, and he let her kiss him for a brief while - she knew he wanted her to kiss him - before she finally pulled away, licking her lips slowly. He watched her, his blue grey eyes struggling to retain their usual unemotional look. ''You know, it won't be a crime for you to be less impassive,'' she murmured into his ear, feeling him shiver a little against her. ''At least, I wouldn't deem it a crime...'' she smiled.

He just shook his head and withdrew from her, as he usually did. The Queen tilted her head, but shrugged and set that aside. ''I hear that there's a new candidate for Alice?'' she yawned, shifting in the throne so that she was properly seated. The man glanced up at her, surprise flickering through his blue eyes. The Queen sighed softly, knowing that he wasn't going to speak unless she let him. ''You may speak. For now.''

''When did such a thing happen?'' the man asked, his voice quiet. He was always quiet. It was very strange, but ever since the first moment he had come to serve her, he had been a quiet man. Or perhaps man was too far a stretch. He couldn't be much older than she herself was - he was nineteen, at most. Still a youth. A youth trapped in problems that no sane adult would be willing to face, alone...

Then again, that was why he threw away his name, wasn't it? Threw away every shred of his past, coming to a dreamland which refused to let anyone escape. ''I don't know, SeeWoo,'' she shrugged, his flinch not escaping her attention - she rarely addressed him by his actual name, and every time she did that, she suspected memories of..._before _would flicker through him, making him feel things he didn't want to.

''Does the Queen of Hearts not know about everything which goes on within the cursed Wonderland?'' he asked, voice as soft as always. She had to strain her ears a little just to pick up what he had just said. ''After all, you are the Queen. And the Queen is the most important character in the whole of Wonderland, isn't she?'' he had a pleasant voice, which made her wonder why he didn't like to speak so much.

''I am the Queen, that's true...'' she studied her fingernails as she spoke, wondering what she could do to pass the time. ''But even then, the White Rabbit is more...powerful than I am. He is a very strange fellow, that one. I can never quite guess at what he's thinking. How he decided upon the latest 'Alice', I myself am not quite sure. He knows so much more than I do, after all...I can never tell what he'll do next.''

''Then what of the Cheshire Cat?'' the blond next asked. The Queen stiffened at the name - her eyes narrowed at the surge of memories the name brought forth. Instantly, she was off her throne, her black and red robes swooshing around her as she whipped back, glaring at her servant. He was not cowed, his gaze remaining as placidly unemotional as it always was. He was, after all, very used to her mood swings.

''Do not ever speak that foul name,'' she spat. ''You know how much I cannot stand that wretched cat, Jack of Hearts...'' as she spoke, she noticed Jack's hand, drifting slowly to the sword which was strapped to his hip. As though the very title of 'Jack of Hearts' made him recall something he didn't want to remember. ''Are you trying to displease me, Jack?'' her voice dropped, becoming soft and low. Dangerous.

''Never, my Queen,'' he bowed deferentially to her, making her relax a little. Slowly, she sat back down on her throne, her bad mood passing as quickly as smoke dissipated in the wind. Jack watched her for a while, not saying anything. Not moving a single muscle. He was very good at that...not moving. Not speaking. If one didn't know better, they might have thought that he was a statue, instead of a live human being.

''Now, we just sit here and wait,'' the Queen murmured, her eyes drifting to the clock on the far wall. A clock whose hands never moved, forever stuck at one time - at six pm. The time for tea. ''They're late,'' she added, her gaze narrowing at the clock. ''The 'Alice' is late. I really don't like it whenever they're late,'' she muttered to herself. ''You'd think they would have the decency to try and show up on time.''

''Perhaps it's because they fear you,'' Jack said softly. ''Who doesn't fear the very sound of your name, my Queen? The Queen of Hearts, the ruler of Wonderland, the one who can order them to _off with their heads..._it is no surprise that 'Alice' might be reluctant to meet you,'' Jack's blue eyes pierced her. It made her feel a little uncomfortable, which was strange. For her. ''The Queen of Hearts...Miku Hatsune.''

She shrugged. ''I thought I told you before not to refer to me using my real name,'' she said simply, the words not spoken with any real heat. She could not be angry over such a trivial issue - though she knew she should be. In Wonderland, names were important. Without a name, one was nothing - one became nothing but a piece of scrap paper, tossed around forever in the restless wind. It was...sad.

And that was a very cruel thing, the loss of a name. Just like the loss of a shadow. In order to become the Queen of Hearts, the feared ruler of Wonderland, she had given up the name of 'Miku Hatsune'...it was a name that she knew no more. She had no name now, save for that of her title - 'The Queen of Hearts'. She was not supposed to respond to any other name, the White Rabbit had reminded her. Repeatedly.

Her lips curled at the thought. A title she had once hankered after, for God knew how long - she had once wanted to be the Queen so badly, the thought of it had consumed her very being, leaving behind nothing but a burning ambition. To be the best of the best. She had always been a perfectionist, and to her, there had been nothing more perfect than being the ruler of Wonderland. The epitome of perfection.

Now, if she could go back in time to visit her younger self, she would berate her for her own stupidity. The Queen choked back a bitter laugh - perfection? In a way, yes. But she was the perfect ruler of an imperfect world, and as a result...didn't that twist her, in a way? She was the beautifully eternal Queen, the Queen whose youthful beauty seemed to rot away from the very inside. Rotting her, corrupting her...

Clawing her way up to the very top, she had ensured that no one else could ever usurp her throne. People loved her, everyone adored her, hungered after her, desired to make her their own - and she had taken advantage of all that, granting herself the position of 'Queen'. The 'King', she had...disposed of, shortly after attaining the throne. And because of what she had done, the dream had punished her.

Cursed to be the beautiful, youthful Queen for evermore. That was who she was, and all thoughts of being perfect had long fled from her mind. Perfection wasn't something she longed for anymore - she no longer desired to be at the top. To satisfy her own power hungry urges. Truly, after becoming the sole, eternal ruler of Wonderland, she had only ever had one real desire. One that she shared with many others.

_I just want to run away from here...are you Alice? If you're Alice, get us all out of here - please, just get me out of this cursed dream._

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_I have completely no idea where the hell am I. _He choked back a small, semi-hysterical laugh - hell was an apt description of this place, indeed. Len glanced around the gloomy forest - he was not very sure about how long he had been wandering around in this place for. Perhaps for only a second...or perhaps for an entire eternity. After all, he was in a dream, was he not? And he had no idea how time flowed, in this dream.

In fact, he would have said that time didn't flow _at all, _in this forest. From the very first moment he had stepped foot in here, it had been an eternal twilight, and he didn't like it. The darkness was not a welcoming one - this silent dimness hid secrets within it, taunting secrets which unnerved any soul unfortunate enough to pass through its depths. Len could honestly say that he was not feeling comfortable in here.

It was still night here...a never-ending, eternal night which crept up on people, startling them and refusing to let go. It was all very eerie, in his opinion - this was a dark night which suffocated others, delighting in making others suffer. He was honestly tired of wandering around here, unable to see any end in sight. _Ah, but 'Alice', if you want to leave this dream...then you have to truly become Alice, first._

Len gritted his teeth. ''Stop messing around in my head, whoever you are,'' he snapped out, irritated by the mysterious voice. Whoever it was gave a small laugh, a dry, whispery laugh, just like the rustling of autumn leaves against the ground. But it didn't say anything else to acknowledge his comment, and that made him wonder whether he was going insane. _First sign of madness, talking to empty air. Isn't it?_

_What you deem as insane in your little world of normalcy isn't what passes for sane, in this twisted world of madness. _The voice now had a slight lilting edge to it, a subtle undercurrent of cruelty that struck him like a sledgehammer. _And if you hope to survive here, 'Alice', then your sanity is the very first thing you're going to have to give up. Don't you agree with me?_

_Who are you? _Len thought back, wondering if he would get an answer. There was another laugh in response to his question, a mocking laugh that made his hairs stand on end. It wasn't a very _pleasant _laugh - in fact, one could even say that it was the sort of laugh that would appear in a child's nightmare. It was a laugh that fed insanity to all who chanced to hear it, and even now, Len shook his head, feeling perturbed.

_Who am I? It's not important. Just know that I control everything and everyone around here. Not the Queen of Hearts. Not the White Rabbit. I'm the little dream that is fighting to survive, in a world where everyone does their best to forget about it. I'm what causes you to look over your shoulder at every given opportunity. I'm what makes this darkness so ominous._

_A dream?___Len found this all rather amusing, for some reason. _If you're the dream who doesn't want to cease existing, then why are you telling me to become Alice? I mean...if I become Alice, then I'll be able to get out of here. And once I do that, people will start forgetting all about you. Isn't that the one thing you wish to avoid? Being a dream?_

_Because I know you won't succeed, that's why. _The dream slithered around his mind, its soft voice raspy and hissing. It reminded Len of a skeleton, for some strange reason - a wispy, _barely there _sort of voice. Like the twilight years of an old man's life. _Don't you find it amusing to build someone's hopes up, then watch them fail? As the Cheshire Cat would say. He is a very strange fellow, that cat._

The dream continued, as though Len wasn't even there anymore - it sounded as if it was speaking to itself, almost. _If I were 'Alice', I would try and find the Cheshire Cat, before I seek out the Queen of Hearts. The Cheshire Cat is a hated character in Wonderland, but he isn't the most cunning one. The most vicious one. Oh, he is far from being vicious, here._

_Who is the vicious one, then? _Len wondered why he was even talking to the dream. Hearing voices in his head...it was never a good thing, was it? But then, Wonderland wasn't the world he once knew. Perhaps, in Wonderland, what he usually considered _insane _passed for normalcy. Perhaps everyone could hear a voice in their head. Or perhaps only the insane could step into the twisted world of Wonderland. Who knew?

_Oh, the Queen of Hearts. You don't want to cross her. It's off with your head if you do that, you see, _the dream answered sagely. _She has an agenda for everything she does, you know? Perhaps she will help you. Perhaps she will hinder you. It all depends on what agenda she has, for now...or maybe she will help you simply because you amuse her. She is a very strange character, here in Wonderland._

_And you would be the strangest of them all, I presume. _The dream didn't respond. Len blinked, looking around - he had been moving while he talked to the voice in his head, and now, a path loomed before him. It was a very _strange _path, one that somehow reminded him of a candy cane. On either side of the red and white path, there was a row of rosebushes. The roses were yellow instead of red. _Curious._

He looked up. There was a wooden door with a yellow heart on it, right at the very end of the path. The door hung in mid-air, unattached to anything - no frame, no hinge, no wall. Nothing. It was just a door. _Why, go on then, 'Alice', _the dream murmured in his ear. _Beyond the door lies what you've been searching for. But what would that be? A name? A shadow? A reason to live? Wonderland will not provide all that._

_I'm searching for Alice. _Len glanced at the door, feeling unnerved. _What I want to know is...why is there no Alice in this Wonderland? What kind of Wonderland exists without an Alice? Is Alice not the most fundamental character in the whole of Wonderland? Without Alice, this place is just going around in endless circles, never breaking free of this cursed cycle. Isn't it?_

_You're asking the wrong question, _the dream laughed. _You should know why there's no Alice - you just said so yourself. A Wonderland without an Alice functions just like a confused circle...it spins around everywhere, but it doesn't have any ending in sight. As a dream which wants to survive, isn't that the one thing I desire the most? To never, ever end._

The dream was making Len feel like an idiot. _Then why are you allowing other people to have a chance to become 'Alice'? I mean, if someone succeeds, they'll get to escape from this dream...and should that happen, wouldn't the other people who are trapped here be able to leave as well? Since the Alice would be able to find a way out of this cursed place?_

_I am not an unfair dream, _the dream said slowly. _I find mortals very amusing. The way they try to cling on to life, to try and escape the fates they have been allocated...don't you find it all rather funny? So I give you a sporting chance. A Wonderland without an Alice never ends, but I must admit it gets rather boring. So...there you have it. The reason why._

_So Alice is here for your entertainment, then? _Len thought dryly. The dream didn't reply again, and Len wondered why. Perhaps he had struck a nerve. Or perhaps the dream simply didn't wish to reply. Who knew the ways and thoughts of dreams? Len made his way down the path, half-expecting someone to pop out and ambush him at any moment - but that didn't happen, and he made it to the door without any problem.

_What is it you desire the most? Wonderland will give it to you...but Wonderland does not provide one things without a price. That is how the human world works, does it not? No one ever gives without expecting anything in return. Wonderland is much like a mortal, in this case. It will not grant you anything without collecting its debt, in return._

_So you're telling me I can just open this...door, that leads to apparently nowhere, and I can have whatever I want. So long as I pay the price for that. _Len felt rather suspicious. Slowly, he looked around, behind the door - and he saw nothing but stretches of more forest. _Right. This door doesn't even lead to anywhere. If I step through it, I'll just end up...in more forest._

_Well, why don't you just try? _The dream whispered enticingly. _You don't know how this world works, do you? So you don't truly have a right to state whether or not that door leads to anywhere. But me...I control this land. And what I say rules. When I say that the door will give you whatever it is you desire..._the voice turned icy cold. _You'll do well to listen to me._

Len actually became a little nervous, at the sound of the dream's cruelty. Swallowing, he decided that it wouldn't do any harm, to try out what the dream suggested - reaching out, he placed his hand on the cold doorknob. Then he hesitated. What should he ask for, then? What was the one thing in Wonderland that he most wanted to find? He needed, wanted, to find his memories..._but Wonderland will not provide that. It does not provide your true desire._

Would becoming Alice help him to regain a little of the memories he had lost, in the process of coming here? He could only hope. To become Alice...resolutely, Len turned the doorknob. He had to get out of Wonderland, and get back all his memories - why had he thrown his past away? It was something he couldn't seem to recall...and if he had to give up the name of 'Len' to become Alice...would he do that, then?

_Help me find the Cheshire Cat, _he thought, as he stepped through the door. He thought that, as he wished his wish, he heard the dream begin to laugh. It was an almost mocking laugh, and it sent a shiver of foreboding through him. He didn't like the laugh of the dream...but then, the moment he stepped through the door, the laughter faded, and he was no longer in a forest. Instead, he was...somewhere else.

He was overlooking a small town, down in the valley. He looked around - the forest was gone, the dream along with it. The door itself had disappeared as well. He blinked, startled. The forest, and everything that had happened to him while he was inside it, was fast becoming a distant memory...everything except for his one wish. His desire to find the Cheshire Cat.

Had he just imagined the dream's laugh, then?


	3. TweedleDEE

_Did you ever wonder who the real Alice was?_

Len stopped, shaking his head, trying to get the voice out of his mind. The dream just laughed and carried on. _There was an Alice once, you know. In the past. In this alternate world. So long ago that...even I myself can't quite remember when. Would you know, then?_

Len chose to ignore the dream. The dream didn't say anything, staying silent after that, though Len could sense its presence around him, smiling and biding its time. He had to wonder what, exactly, was it waiting for. For him to fail? For him to remember? Or for him to finally answer its question? He didn't actually care, though he did feel a little curious.

_Curiosity...it isn't a very pleasant emotion. It makes people do foolish things. _The dream slithered around in his mind, annoying Len to no end. Len just sighed and looked around. He was in the town right now, actually, but he had no idea what he was supposed to be doing. How was he supposed to find the Cheshire Cat when he had no idea how he looked like? Was he supposed to look for a cat? Or for a person?

''Oh, hello, you look lost,'' a voice chimed from his left. Len blinked, whipping around - there stood a green haired boy, dressed in a simple outfit of blue. He was in blue from head-to-toe, and his green eyes fixed unblinkingly on Len, making him feel vaguely uncomfortable. He was carrying a scythe in his right hand, and there was a tiny, knowing smirk adorning his face.

''Do you need help?'' another voice chimed from his right. Eyes narrowing, Len glanced across in the direction of the voice - there was another green haired boy, who looked exactly like the first one. He, too, was wearing blue, and he carried a scythe in his left hand. The smirk on his face was much like the first boy's. The only difference between them was that this boy was wearing a pair of black-rimmed spectacles.

''Who are you two?'' Len said, his voice flat. He didn't like being surprised, he realised. He didn't like that these two boys had managed to pop up, from out of nowhere, to surprise him. The two boys - twins, were they? - just shrugged, coming closer to stand side-by-side, before him. They really were completely identical, Len noticed. Save for the spectacles one wore.

''I'm Gumo Nakajima,'' the one on Len's left introduced himself, tilting his head. At the sound of his own name, the boy's fingers tightened subtly around the handle of his scythe - the scythe, which had a sharp blade stained in dark crimson, Len now noticed with trepidation.

''I'm Gumiya Nakajima,'' the one on Len's right said. He was the one with the glasses. His tiny smirk widened as he glanced at Gumo - the latter was still gripping his scythe tightly, like he was trying to restrain himself from using it on Len. Len resisted the urge to back away.

''We're Tweedledee,'' the two of them said together, their tiny smirks turning into genuine smiles - but for some reason, they seemed to become even more intimidating, instead. ''Of Wonderland. Of Tweedle Dee and Dum. But we're not _Dee _and _Dum,_'' the two continued. ''We're just Dee. Don't mix it all up, now.''

Len was getting a little confused. ''How can you be one person if you're obviously...two?'' he asked, gesturing at the both of them. Gumo and Gumiya just exchanged a look, disappointment obvious in their gazes. Len wondered why.

''It's so sad, every time we talk to a newcomer, they always seem to know so little,'' Gumo breathed, closing his eyes. The green haired boy threw his scythe up into the air - before Len's very eyes, the scythe collapsed into itself, rapidly shrinking in size. By the time Gumo caught his weapon again, the scythe was tiny enough to keep in his pocket. He did just that.

Only Len seemed to be surprised by this little act. No one else around them, none of the other townspeople, appeared to pay the green haired twins any heed. Gumiya just laughed quietly. ''Of course. They're all so ignorant. Maybe it's just because...ah,'' he exchanged another look with Gumo. His twin? His identical twin brother? Len couldn't be sure. And why wasn't anyone else here giving the three of them any attention?

''Are...you...Alice?'' the two turned to ask Len, their voices lowering to become soft whispers. At once, the moment the question was asked, the townspeople who had been ignoring him, right up till this very point...they all froze. They stopped, turning around to stare at him and the twins. All conversation ceased, all movement froze...everyone just stared. At him. At them.

_Why is everyone staring at me, all of a sudden? Is it because of the name Alice...? _''We should take you back to see the Queen,'' Gumo mused, picking absently at the hem of his blue shirt. Now that Len noticed, his blue outfit...it seemed to be a sort of uniform. A royal uniform? There were small hearts imprinted all over the shirt, like a sort of design. _The Queen of Hearts..._

''The Queen doesn't like latecomers,'' Gumiya agreed, tossing his scythe up into the air, as well. The weapon rapidly shrank in size, and without any other word, the bespectacled boy tucked the mini-scythe into his shirt. Len just blinked - it was the second time he had seen the shrinking trick, but he still wasn't quite able to believe what his eyes were telling him.

_In Wonderland, things are never quite what they appear to be..._''Well, what are you looking at, people?'' Gumo snapped, turning around to face the gawking townspeople. ''Get a move on! There isn't anything to see here!'' he clapped his hands, and the sharp sound appeared to rouse the townspeople out of some deep slumber.

With some low muttering, the people went back to their business, though Len noticed that some of them continued looking over their shoulders at him...fear stark on their faces. _Fear? But why would they fear me? I never did anything to them..._Gumiya coughed, drawing Len's attention to him. The green haired boy sighed quietly.

''Is there anything you would like to see, before we take you to see the Queen?'' there was a distinct look of boredom on his face. The words seemed to be scripted, rehearsed one too many times for his liking. Gumo rolled his eyes, looking up at the blue sky above them. He had his hands shoved inside his pockets, and the boy was now leaning against the side of a shop.

''The Cheshire Cat,'' Len answered, irritated by their 'couldn't-care-less' attitude. _The dream said that it would be better to meet the Cheshire Cat before I meet the Queen...since he is less ruthless, apparently?_ The twins - Tweedledee, didn't they say they were called? - instantly looked around, their eyes narrowing. Len received the strange feeling that he had said something he was not meant to say.

''The Cheshire Cat?'' Gumo echoed, his voice turning dark, all of a sudden. ''Oh, Alice. How foolish of you. You do not want to meet the Cheshire Cat now. You really don't want to.''

''Yes, the Cheshire Cat is a hated character in Wonderland. Gumo doesn't like him, certainly. Why do you want to meet Chessie, hm?'' the other boy, Gumiya, pushed his spectacles up his nose. ''Alice - the candidate for Alice - is to meet the Queen first, you know. It is...important.''

''I was...told to meet the Cheshire Cat before I meet the Queen. Someone said that the cat is less ruthless than the Queen of Hearts. Less likely to 'off with my head', at any rate,'' Len's eyes narrowed as he noticed the two fidgeting, whispering to each other. ''What, am I wrong about the Queen of Hearts?'' he asked them.

''No, of course you're not wrong,'' Gumo faced him, a strained smile on his face. ''Alice is never wrong. Tweedledee just...we don't like this,'' his green eyes widened. ''You're not following the story, Alice,'' he whispered. ''That's not good for us, or for Wonderland. But mainly for us,'' he gestured at himself and Gumiya. ''If we upset the Queen, she might order our deaths. Not following the story displeases her greatly.''

''She doesn't have to know, does she?'' Len couldn't stop the words from flowing out of his mouth, and he realised blatantly that _these were not his words. _He wasn't the one thinking them, speaking them. The _dream _was. He tried to wrest back control of his body, but the dream refused to relinquish its grip on him. ''I just have to find the Cheshire Cat. That's it, really.''

''But why, that's what I want to know,'' Gumiya murmured, tilting his head. ''None of the other, previous Alices ever expressed a desire to go somewhere else before meeting the Queen, before. You are a different Alice. Is that for a good or bad thing?'' he mused. ''You're more in-tune with the dream than the others, aren't you? It's the first time I've seen a male Alice.''

_What? _Before Len could voice out anything, the green haired youth smiled, much to the chagrin of his brother. ''Well, that doesn't matter to us in the end. We're all just pawns the dream is making use of, anyway,'' he said cheerfully. ''Don't you agree, Gumo?'' the other boy just snorted and looked away. ''We shall bring you to see Chessie, if you really want to. But...'' his green eyes narrowed. ''Don't regret it, Alice.''

_Why would I regret anything - _''Don't look back,'' Gumo leant away from the shop, his smile returning. With those words, he and his brother turned away from Len, walking onward down the street. The townspeople made way for them without them having to say a single thing - it caused Len to wonder what sort of important people these two were. _Go on, follow them. They will lead you to the Cheshire Cat._

He wondered whether he ought to go and see the Cat, after all. The dream couldn't be trusted. But honestly, all the people he had met in this place so far were dubious characters. The White Rabbit. Tweedledee - who, unlike in the original Alice in Wonderland, was not one, but two people. If Tweedledee was here...then where was the other one? Tweedledum? There were so many things that were different in here...

Besides, Tweedledee would lead him to see the Queen later, probably. He honestly had no idea why he was going by such a roundabout way, if he was going to see the Queen later, anyway..._it wasn't such a good idea to listen to the dream. It brings nothing but trouble, in the end._

_So why did I listen to it? _Because, despite the lies and untruths it uttered...it made itself sound so alluringly attractive that he couldn't help but agree with its falsehoods. When it suggested seeking out the Cheshire Cat before the Queen, he had gone along with the idea - it sounded so right at the time. _The Cheshire Cat is nowhere as vicious as the Queen herself. _But, if that truly happened to be the case, then...

If the Queen found out that he didn't follow the story, she would get upset. He had managed to learn that much from Gumo and Gumiya. If she found out...then wouldn't she punish him most _viciously _then? He swallowed at the thought of that. Maybe it would have been better if Len just went along with Tweedledee to see the Queen of Hearts. But he was already stuck here, so...

What could _he _learn from the Cheshire Cat? He wondered about that, but the dream said nothing to help him, remaining absolutely quiet for once. Len had long wanted the dream to stay silent, but not now. Not when he actually needed the dream to tell him things. _Dammit, I guess the little bastard is leaving me alone._

''We're here, but I don't think the Cheshire Cat is home yet,'' one of the two - Len wasn't sure whether it was Gumo or Gumiya, since all he could see of them was their backs - said. Len glanced up. They were standing before a giant, ornately-wrought black iron gate. Len took a step back, away from the mansion, and even then, he couldn't see the whole building.

It was that big. Len sighed. ''He's not here? Then I guess there's no point in waiting around,'' he shrugged. _It was never really important that I meet with the cat, anyway. It was the dream who told me to...I still wonder why, but the slimy little bastard isn't telling me anything. Is it bad, that I'm starting to rely on a voice in my head? They don't think it's strange, though..._

The 'they' referring to Gumo and Gumiya. Gumo turned around to face him, the strained smile on his face softening slightly. ''Well, for once, Alice seems to make sense!'' he announced. ''So why don't the three of us make our way to the Queen's palace before the cat shows up, and before the queen finds out that we didn't -''

''Did someone call my name, hm?'' a new voice rang out. At once, all three of them turned to face the iron gate, Gumo letting out an audible sigh of frustration in the process. Len blinked - there stood a purple haired man, his long hair brushing against his waist. There were a pair of cat ears atop his head - _it's the Cheshire Cat, _he blatantly realised. _So he really is a person._

''Oh, Chessie,'' Gumiya snorted. ''You're home. Dammit. Gumo hoped you wouldn't be around. Ever since that last time you stole his scythe, he has been nursing a really nasty grudge against you, and you know, since we're both connected and all that crap, I kind of hate you too. Sorry about that,'' Gumiya inclined his head slightly.

''No, that's okay!'' the Cheshire Cat said cheerily. ''Aw, I'm so touched that Gumo came to visit the lonely me, even though he hates me so much...'' the purple haired man beamed at the boy in question, his blue eyes filled with humour. Len noticed that Gumo was twitching. ''Gumo, you seem to have grown shorter. Are you drinking enough milk, like I told you to the last time?''

Gumo hissed. ''I have not grown any shorter, and if you say anything about my height again, I will erase every single last cell in your body, so help me,'' the green haired boy threatened, his fingers clenching and unclenching. The Cheshire Cat just yawned, looking bored with all this.

''Really? I'm pretty sure you can't do that when you don't have your pretty little scythe with you,'' the cat yawned again, rubbing tiredly at his eyes. Instantly, Gumo's hand shot to his shirt, patting it frantically - the search was halted when the other man smiled, pulling a miniature scythe out of his pocket. The tiny scythe looked remarkably like Gumo's own...

''You damned pimp, how dare you mock me...!'' Gumo was trying his best to jump over the gate. Gumiya was doing his best to restrain his twin from doing that, though Len didn't see the need to do such a thing - after all, how could Gumo possibly scale such a tall gate? ''Give me my scythe back!'' Gumo seethed, his hands flailing wildly at the Cheshire Cat. The cat sighed.

''You left your baby in your right pocket again. You really should start taking better care of your possessions, you know exactly how good I am when it comes to stealing,'' the cat winked. ''I'll give you the scythe back if you tell me what's the true purpose of your visit. The last time you two paid me a social visit, it ended up in me having to kick you both out since you two tried to set fire to my Mistress's house. So...?''

''Alice,'' Gumiya said shortly, still attempting to wrestle back his brother, and prevent the irate Gumo from clawing the Cheshire Cat's eyes out. ''He said he wanted to see you before he saw the Queen...I don't know why he isn't following the story,'' his voice softened to a whisper, at the way the cat's eyes widened. ''It's a new kind of Alice. For once...it isn't a girl candidate. This has only happened before one other time.''

Like Cheshire Cat, Gumo and Gumiya, one set who made up the character Tweedledee, were _old _pawns. They still remembered what the first few Alices were like, and the cat knew what Gumiya was referring to, now. He nodded, turning to look past Gumo and Gumiya - there stood a young blond boy, his blue eyes staring right back at him. He was scowling a little.

Len saw clearly, for the first time, the face of the Cheshire Cat. At once, he stumbled back, a jolt running through him - _he seems...familiar. I've never seen him before. But he feels a little familiar, somehow...a familiar stranger. Have I come across him before? Somewhere? _The cat smiled at him. ''Ah, hello Alice! It's terrible that you're standing out there...I would invite you in, but I'd like to stay alive,'' he said sheepishly.

Len glanced at Gumo, who was still rattling the iron gates, his teeth bared into a snarl, and understood quite plainly what the cat was talking about. He simply nodded, not knowing what to say in response - he was finally face-to-face with the Cheshire Cat, whom the dream had wanted him to meet. Yet, now the dream was silent. So what was he supposed to ask?

''The dream led you here, right?'' the cat asked, jerking Len out of his inner world. ''That's why you're here, instead of with the Queen. You really shouldn't listen to that dream, you know,'' the cat placed a hand on his hip, looking bored. ''It's a really bad influence, especially on Alice! Telling you to come and find the unimportant me when, really, you have other things to see to,'' the cat shook his head. ''That's so sad!''

''So...I should be...going to the palace now...I guess?'' Len muttered, more to himself than to anyone else there. _I just wasted half an hour of my life, _he sighed, shaking his head. _I wonder what was the point of this visit. Just so I can meet the Cheshire Cat? _He frowned. _That cat really feels familiar, but I've never seen that man before, I'm certain...who is he, really?_

_The Cheshire Cat. A hated character in the twisted world of Wonderland. Everyone here has a reason to hate that little kitty, _the dream suddenly breathed into his mind. But it remained silent after that, and Len rolled his eyes - well, that was helpful. Maybe he should do what the cat suggested, and ignore the dream from this point onwards. After all, the dream had told him to find the Cheshire Cat.

And Len still had no idea what was the point in doing such a thing. Absently, he turned around, wandering away from the mansion. Gumo and Gumiya gaped after him. ''Where the hell is that Alice going?'' Gumo snorted, forgetting that he was trying to kill the cat for a moment. ''He'll be totally lost without the two of us. And then the Queen would kill us. Gumiya, we're dead,'' Gumo sighed, rubbing at his eyes. ''Again,'' he added.

Cheshire Cat suddenly flicked the scythe back towards Gumo, who managed to catch it, his hand shooting quickly away from his eyes to grab the weapon. Once the scythe was in the familiar grip of its owner, it snapped outwards, elongating until it was back to its usual size - almost as tall as Gumo himself. ''Gumiya, put me down right now,'' Gumo growled at his twin brother. ''I have an annoying cat to murder.''

''Don't you want to go after Alice instead?'' the cat pointed out flatly, gesturing somewhere into the distance. There was the blond Alice, who appeared to be walking off with no idea where he was going. ''He seems to be in a hurry to get a move on, you know,'' he added helpfully. Gumo growled again, more frustratedly this time, but let the scythe collapse back inwards.

''Why did the dream tell him to come here, though? It never said such a thing to the other Alices before,'' Gumiya said thoughtfully, letting his arms unwind from around his brother. Gumo brushed himself off, glaring angrily at the cat the whole while - Gumiya knew that Gumo was more than capable of scaling the gates and getting to the Cheshire Cat, but he seemed to be restraining himself for now. Just barely.

''Because he's a male Alice? Remember the last time we had a male candidate for Alice...'' the cat shuddered, raking his fingers through his long purple hair. ''Maybe the dream just wanted a repeat. But I'll never do such a thing again, so the dream is mistaken if it thinks it can keep on manipulating us the way it always does,'' he shook his head. Dreams learnt. People did too. All people would learn, eventually. Even cats.

Gumiya nodded and waved, setting off after Alice. Gumo did likewise, though he glared balefully at the Cheshire Cat, instead of waving like his twin brother. Cheshire Cat just sighed and smiled, waving back. The twins who made up Tweedledee...they were so different from the other set. These two showed their feelings and emotions plainly. The other two...did not.

_This Alice is different. He's...not like the other candidates. He seems familiar, actually, _the Cheshire Cat frowned. _I can't remember why. But I know it's important, _he yawned, rubbing sleepily at his eyes. _Well, it doesn't matter until later, I suppose. Till then, I'll just take a nap...my Mistress doesn't need me yet, after all. And I feel that I do deserve a nice nap._

After all the work he had done, talking to the White Rabbit? Of course he deserved a break.

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_**Solitaryloner: **__The ending. The ending. I don't get the ending at all. Don't ask me about the ending. This chapter was...kind of weird..._

_But this whole story is weird anyway so it kind of doesn't matter if the chapters are weird. I guess. This story isn't very popular, I know, but I would appreciate a few reviews, so please?_


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